1. Field
The present invention relates to devices which are used to dam or block the drain, vent, waste plumbing systems above the test tee, such that the system can be filled with air or water to hydraulically test the system.
2. State of the Art
When a plumber installs a drain, vent, waste system in either new construction or in remodeling, a test tee is installed in the low point of the drain, vent, waste system. When the drain, vent, waste system is completed, it must be tested hydraulically to insure the absence of leaks in the system. To accomplish the hydraulic test, the plumbing system must be blocked or dammed at the test tee so that the system can be filled with water above the test tee.
Heretofore, it has been common practice to utilize an inflatable rubber or elastomeric device which can be installed through the lateral opening in the tee to block the plumbing system above the tee. Once installed above the lateral opening in the test tee, the block-off device is inflated so as to make a fluid tight seal with the plumbing system at the test tee. Water is then introduced into the plumbing system and allowed to stand in the plumbing system above the test tee to determine if there are any leaks in the system.
Following the test, the inflatable device must be removed to allow the water to drain from the system. The system normally contains a substantial volume of water under a substantial head or pressure. In deflating the damming device, care must be taken to prevent the device from being swept into the drain conduit downstream from the test tee. Otherwise, the device is likely to be caught in the drainage conduit and must then be removed. To alleviate the chance of having the damming device being swept deep into the drain conduit, a tether is commonly attached to the device. If the device is swept into the drainage conduit, the tether holds the device close to the test tee and after the water has drained from the plumbing system being tested, the tether is used to withdraw the damming device from the drainage conduit through the test tee.
Unfortunately, it has been the sad experience of many plumbers to have the tether break as the damming device is being swept into the drainage conduit by the head pressure of the water in the system being tested. Alternatively, and just as perplexing, the tether can become entangled with the damming device in the drainage conduit such that even though the tether extends out of the test tee, the damming device cannot be extracted from the drainage conduit.
Further, the inflatable damming devices are relatively expensive and must be replaced rather frequently. It would be highly desirable to provide a simple, inexpensive device for blocking or damming the plumbing system at the test tee, wherein the water can readily be released through the device following the hydraulic testing and further wherein the damming device cannot be swept into the drainage conduit below the test tee.
3. Objectives
A principal objective of the present invention is to provide an inexpensive, foolproof device which is easily and readily installed in the test tee as the plumbing system is being fabricated, wherein the device blocks or dams the plumbing system above the test tee, and wherein following the test, the water in the tested system can be drained through the blocking device while the device remains in place within the test tee so as to positively prevent the blocking device from being swept into the drainage conduit below the test tee.
A particular objective of the present invention is to provide a shallow, cup-shaped sealing element molded integrally from a polymeric material, wherein the cup-shaped element is adapted to be installed in the straight through barrell of a plastic test tee just above the lateral opening in the test tee.
An additional objective is to provide a cup-shaped element as in the above paragraph comprising a circular disc bottom which is integrally molded to an upstanding cylindrical sidewall, with a break away groove being molded between the sidewall and the disc bottom such that following the hydraulic test of the plumbing system, the disc bottom can be readily broken away from the sidewall for easy removal of the disc bottom portion and sidewall portion separately from the test tee.
A further objective is to provide a cup-shaped element of the type as in the above paragraph, wherein an elongate prong is formed integrally with and extends downwardly from the disc bottom, whereby the prong can be used to break an initial opening in the disc bottom to allow water to drain therethrough from above the disc element while the disc element and the sidewall of the cup-shaped element remain fixed in place in the test tee.